Perfectly Screwed
by razzledazzle96
Summary: At first glance, Nathaniel Black and Theresa Tyler appear to be polar opposites. But, little do they know, they have much more in common than meets the eye. ONE-SHOT!


**AN: **OK, this is definitely something different. My second Camp Rock FanFic. I usually support Naitlyn, but I am not to the point that I wouldn't read a Nitchie, Natess, or Nate/OC FanFic. I actually think Nate and Tess would, in an odd sort of way, be good for each other. They're polar opposites in their demeanors, but I think they are also similar in other ways. So don't be all prejudiced against this one-shot. Give it a chance. Oh, and I don't own the song "A Little Bit Longer" by the Jonas Brothers - duh. I changed a few of the lyrics to make it fit, but not that much, so don't freak out.

At first glance, Nathaniel Black and Theresa Tyler appear to be polar opposites. All Tess knew was to take, take, take until she could take no more while all Nate had ever done was give, give, give until he had nothing to give left.

His hair was dark brown: a mess of curls atop his head. Her locks fell in a shining sheet of gold, never a strand out of place. His eyes were a warm, deep chocolate. Hers were the brightest blue.

But Nate and Tess have more in common than meets the eye. They both are hurting…badly, though the have different ways of hiding it. Tess pushes everyone away with her harsh demeanor and cold words, while Nate puts on a smile and suffers in silence. But the very worst part of it is this: no one, not even their so-called friends or family - _especially_ them - knew what lay just beneath the surface.

Both of them desperately wanted to be perfect, because that was what was expected of them: the one thing neither of them could ever be.

Tess was always trying to fill the impossible shoes of her mother, the famous T.J. Tyler. So what if she had one a million Grammy's and was a household name that every kid in America knew? If the woman couldn't even be a decent mother to her one and only child, then none of those titles mattered a thing to Tess. All she wished was to please her mom - to make her proud - but, no matter what she did, it was never enough.

Nate, too, felt like he was invisible. He was constantly living in the shadow of his fellow band mate, Shane Gray. The press was always focusing on Shane; never on him or Jason. Then again, he was pretty sure that Jason didn't mind all that much. Poor, innocent Jason, who never knew what went on in right in front of him. Maybe it was better that way. At least he didn't know how cruel the world could truly be. Because Nate was tired of picking up the pieces; sick of trying to clean up after Shane's diva act. _He_ was the one who wrote most of the songs. _He_ was the one who insisted that the practiced for their next performance, but it was always _Shane_ who got everything he ever wanted. It had come to the point that Nate couldn't even remember the last time he had truly been happy.

No one knew either of them; not really. All they saw was a beautiful girl who liked to play hard to get and a teen heart throb who was the shy and sensitive one in the band. Of course, paparazzi never bother to get the real stuff. Their job is to find out the half-truths and twist them any way they want to.

It hurt so badly. Nate could feel the ache in his bones; in his heart; in his very soul. He could never be good enough to suit the world, and he could never be perfect. He didn't know when he started the cutting - it just sort of _happened_. He didn't mean to stop talking or eating - that just sort of happened, also. It wasn't like he ever had an appetite anymore, or anything to say. It just felt good to be in control of _something _in his life, because everything else was always so far out of his reach. And the silence was better than having to pretend. The sad part was that if Nate had intentionally started hurting himself, he doubted that anyone would have noticed because he was so good at hiding it all.

Same with Tess. She was only trying to follow in her mother's footsteps, and to do so, she had to look the part. Tess, on the other hand, knew what she was doing. Sure, she felt bad about the drugs and the anorexia at first, but it _did _the numb the pain, if only for a little while.

That was her justification for her actions, and it sounded fine…in her head. They both wanted to pin all the fault on that one word that had supposedly ruined both of their lives, but there was no denying the true culprits. In the end, you only have yourself to blame, and it was that way with Nate and Tess, also. So it wasn't all that surprising that, through all of the hurt and confusion and loneliness, they managed to find a tiny shred of comfort and sanity in each other.

Tess was just minding her own business for once, strolling along the dirt path a few days after Final Jam was over, thoroughly dejected. Shane's rejection still stung - it had driven a knife through her heart, although no one knew how hard she had taken that blow. "Don't be weak, Tess. He's just one guy. Get over it and move on," she told herself. But it didn't help. In fact, the self-pep talk only made it worse.

It was then, while wallowing in self-pity, that she heard the music. It was a voice that she had never heard before: unique and haunting, the first thing to capture her full attention in months. The first music that she had actually cared to listen to since she didn't know how long, and it was coming from behind the lake.

Ever so slowly, Tess crept forward, searching for the stranger with the amazing voice. She hid herself in the thick branches and peered around the leaves. There, sitting on the dock was, to her great surprise, Nate Black. She couldn't recall ever hearing him sing. He had, of course, had a small part in Connect Three's "Play My Music", but back then her ears had been only for Shane.

_Got the news today_

_Doctor said I had to stay_

_A little bit longer, and I'll be fine_

_When I thought it'd all been done_

_When I thought it'd all been said_

_A little bit longer, and I'll be fine_

_But you don't now what you got until it's gone_

_And you don't know what it's like to feel so low_

_And every time you smile or laugh you glow_

_You don't even know_

_No, no_

_You don't even know_

_All this time goes by_

_Still no reason why_

_A little bit longer, and I'll be fine_

_Waiting on a cure_

_But none of them are sure_

_A little bit longer, and I'll be fine_

_But you don't know what you got till it's gone_

_And you don't what it's like to feel so low_

_And every time you smile or laugh you glow_

_You don't even know_

_No, no_

_So I wait till kingdom come_

_All the highs and lows are gone_

_A little bit longer, and I'll be fine_

_A little bit longer, and I'll be fine_

_I'll be, fine_

Tess was stunned. She had never heard such beautiful yet, at the same time, such sad words. She was so immersed in the song that it took her several minutes to notice that Nate had turned around and was staring at her.

"Tess?" he asked, not believing his eyes…or his mouth. That was the first time he'd spoken in a very long time.

"That…that was amazing, Nate," she said quietly.

"Thank you," he replied. She stood still as he silently searched her with his eyes. "Not to be rude or anything…but what are you doing here?"

Tess opened her mouth to respond but then closed it. After a moment's pause, she truthfully said, "I don't know. I was just walking when I heard your song. It was perfect."

Nate snorted bitterly. "Ha. Yeah, right. My song - perfect. More like perfectly screwed."

"Well, then that makes two of us."

"You, daughter of the famous T.J. Tyler, perfectly screwed? Doubt it," scoffed Nate.

To his surprise, she didn't get mad like he expected her to. Instead, she replied, "My life isn't so great either, Nate. The press makes everything look better than it really is - or worse, depending on the way you look at it."

"I - you're right, I suppose. I don't know you, so I guess it's not really fair to make judgments."

"_You _don't know me? My own _mother _doesn't know me. No one does, but they think they do," said Tess, sadness ringing through her words.

"Same here. My parents don't know me, either," Nate admitted. "Neither does Shane or Jason or my sisters."

"Your sisters?" Tess couldn't help but be curious.

"Yup. Only boy, surrounded by three girls. It's a wonder that I didn't turn out gay," he joked.

"That's still left to be decided, but I'm pretty sure that Nate the Great is not gay," Tess teased back.

"Good to know that at least _that _part of my life hasn't been a lie," Nate said, sounding, once again, depressed.

For a moment, Tess became depressed, too. Then she asked herself, "Everything I've worked for is already ruined. Why not take a risk for once?" So, without thinking, she sat down next to Nate and suddenly said, "Well, since you're 'perfectly screwed', at least we can be screwed together."

At that, Nate gave a small smile that grew bigger with every passing moment. He put down his favorite guitar and added, "I like the sound of that. At least we won't be so lonely anymore. I don't suppose you'd like to learn how to play the guitar?" he asked a little shyly.

"Why not? There _is _a first time for everything," replied Tess, gently taking his hand in hers.

**AN: **Not quite sure if I really liked the ending, but that was the best I could do on short notice. PLEASE spread the word. I worked really hard on this! It's six whole pages. Nate and Tess needed some depth to their characters. Tess got the short end of the stick, and poor Nate didn't even get a last name!


End file.
